Life on the Side of the Dirty Mistresses
by McDreamy's Post-It Wife
Summary: Alternate ending to 2x18 - Yesterday. Meredith and Addison POV. MerDer with a little Maddison.


**A/N: So this is my first attempt at writing a story and I would really love to know what people think. It says on my profile that I probably wouldn't post anything and here I am posting something but I had this idea and I thought I should give it a try! I haven't read a story where this has been done before but if it has I apologize – it was unintentional. So this picks up from Mark and Meredith in Joe's at the end of 2x18 Yesterday and moves onto the scene of Addison sitting in the trailer.**

**Disclaimer:** I don't own any of the characters or Grey's Anatomy. They belong to Shonda and she has done more with them than I could ever hope to do.

**Life on the Side of the Dirty Mistresses**

Mark glanced at Meredith, "What if you're wrong? What if, just this once...life comes down on the side of the dirty mistresses?"

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Obligation...That one word had been running through Addison Montgomery-Shepherd's mind ever since her husband (if you could still call a man totally in love with someone else a husband) had refuesed to get on the elevator with her and Mark.

Obligation has no place in a marriage, it wasn't in the vows. An obligation was going to visit aunts and uncles who you really don't like but you go anyway because they're family. Obligation was going to some fancy benefit because it's your job even though you really just want to go home and sleep. Obligation should have nothing to do with forgiveness or trying or anything else that Addison had been hoping Derek would do.

Addison sat, tea now stone cold in front of her, wondering who the hell she had ended up here...in a trailer...in the woods...contemplating the end of her marriage. He was trying because he felt obliged to, not because he wants to, not because he loves her but because he feels he ought to. And, in that moment, she realised – she deserved better than to be someone's obligation. Things were never perfect with Mark, Mark is Mark after all, but at least he loved her. Maybe it was time to step aside and give them both a shot at a happy ending. This way she could bow out gracefully, on her terms, rather than wait and find him having sex in an empty exam room or supply closet or something.

She dug around in her bag until she found the divorce papers that she had had drawn up all those months ago. 'Should have taken that as a sign' she mused bitterly. 'Who works on their marriage while holding onto divorce papers, just in case?' She signed quickly trying to choke down the tears and the feeling that somehow she had failed. Addison Montgomery-Shepherd...no, just Montgomery now, was not a quitter but Derek had been right. That stormy night when he had come home to find her and Mark together he had said they weren't Addison and Derek anymore. He was right. It was no good trying to pretend that they were. She slowly slid off her rings, placing them carefully on top of the signed papers. Then she pulled on some clothes and, grabbing her bag ran out of the trailer to her car, not daring to looking at Derek slumped on the bed but daring to hope that Mark would still be in Joe's.

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Meredith stood in her room, staring at the rain and cursing herself for allowing herself to hope. Stupid Mark – when has her life ever been as simple as he made it seem? Meet perfect man, he produces perfect, impossible to hate, Isabella Rossellini look-a-like wife. Meet father for the first time in twenty years, he thinks you need money. Mark 'stupid' Sloan says what if life comes down on the side of the dirty mistresses and you _actually_ wait and even worse, you hope. Even though you know that the last time you sat in Joe's waiting and hoping it all went to hell, there was even a damn train crash, if that's not a sign, what is?

She had left Mark in Joe's knowing that is she heard that little bell at the door ring one more time she was probably going to rip it off of the door and beat Mark with it for making her hope. Now here she was, in her room, alone, without hope.

Someone knocked softly on the door and, too tired to tell whoever it was to go away she called quietly for them to come in. Whoever it was stepped into the room and closed the door without saying anything. 'That rules out Izzie' thought Meredith with a small smile, 'so it must be George' but before she could turn around she felt the someone who she assumed was George move to stand behind her, close enough to feel them but not quite touching. Meredith shivered slightly and resisted the urge to pinch herself to make sure this was happening. The last time someone had stood so close to her it was in an elevator and she has spoken first.

"I miss you". He spoke so softly that Meredith wasn't even sure she'd heard it. She began to turn around, closing her eyes, knowing that if she opened them it would turn out to be a dream because that's how things worked for her. "Meredith.." her said her name, in that way that only he could, his voice was soft and low and Meredith suddenly found herself wondering where he learned to do that...was there some kind of class? How to say a woman's name in a way that melts her into a big pile of goo -101?

"Meredith..." he said it again, more insistent this time. She waited, just for a second, holding on to the dream for a little bit longer and opened her eyes. She jumped slightly as her eyes met his piercing blue ones; she really had expected it to be George thinking that hearing and feeling Derek was just a side effect of excessive hope or that she has conjured him up to help her through, just as she had on the day of the bomb.

"This is real", she murmured. Derek chuckled softly.

"Yes"

"You're here"

"Yes"

"Mark was actually right" she said, more to herself than to Derek.

"Meredith, I'm..." Derek began, uncharacteristically nervous but Meredith cut him off. "I don't want to make tapes on my death bed Derek". As she leaned in, putting her hand on his chest, she allowed herself a small smile, thanking whoever it was who controlled stuff like this for allowing, just this once, for life to come down on the side of the dirty mistresses.


End file.
